Where Have All the JRPG Gone?

I was gona post something to see if my account was still active. Meanwhile I'll write something inflammatory.

And I'm sorry if all of this is old hat and none of it is new, I'm not claiming to be original in this rant...



About halfway through completion, my mind may yet be changed, but for now it looks like the JRPG will need to do some deep soul searching while its FF mother ship tries to scramble for any last semblance of street cred with hardcore/old school gamers*. Seriously, does anyone out there have any examples they want to throw my way? I'd love to sink my teeth into a thick piece of JRPG goodness, but the field seems laden with over-hyped, under-deliverers like FFXIII, or lackluster splooge-fests filled with stiff mechanics plastered over by quirky anime visuals.

Is the JRPG dead? Did FFXIII kill it? Am I a latecomer to this debate?

Yes, yes, and YES!

So what. Let's reopen that can of worms. Movies like Brick recast the best elements of film noir in a fresh, mind-blowningly modern way. Can the JRPG revived as well?




*I'm not sure how you personally would define either of those categories, but I think I can safely say I fall into at least one of them.